• GamersGate: 'We're Not Afraid Of Steam'
    122 replies, posted
[url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/32925/GamersGate_Were_Not_Afraid_Of_Steam.php]Source[/url] [quote]Valve's Steam platform may be miles ahead of the pack when it comes to digital gaming distribution on the PC, but competitor [b]GamersGate believes that the behemoth's appeal is 'peaking'[/b]. In an interview with IndustryGamers, GamersGate CEO Theo Bergquist said that Steam is "peaking now while the market is still very hardcore". With GamersGate seeing recent Christmas holiday sales up 72 percent, he believes it has the momentum to [b]eventually overtake Steam[/b]. "To be honest, we're not afraid of Steam" said Bergquist. [b]"One of the reasons we have such great growth is because many gamers out there don't like Steam and see GamersGate as a better alternative."[/b] "Once digital sales are superior to physical sales, we believe Steam will have a harder time remaining number one". He went on to predict "Steam's marketshare will shrink in the future" and suggested that "GamersGate is well-positioned as one of the digital distribution platforms that has strong momentum to gain marketshare." When questioned on the effects the current economy is having on sales, Bergquist said he was not worried. "Despite the bad economy, we haven't seen a decline in sales. It's almost the opposite. I don't think the bad economy has had a great influence on entertainment products of our type." Bergquist's comments come just months after the Steam platform reached 30 million active accounts, representing a 178 percent growth year over year. Six million unique gamers access Steam every day, while as many as three million are simultaneously connected at peak times.[/quote] I don't believe this was the first time GamersGate has said something along these lines. With all due respect, I haven't ever really heard of GamersGate until, well, just now. If nothing else, the fact that all these buisnesses have Steam in their targets means Valve will have to remain competitive, which is always a win for us. I will say this, Steam needs to eventually get around to separating the DRM from the store/application like Stardock does. I don't mind constantly being logged into Steam, but that is the most common complaint I hear about Steam. EDIT: What the fuck?! GamersGate, the service most of us had no idea about, actually claims to be the leading digital distribution platform for PC and Mac. I shit you not, look. [img]http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/3627/gamersgate.jpg[/img] [img]http://washingtonbus.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/mindblown.jpg[/img] I don't know what fucking fantasy world they're living in, but they've got some fucking nerve to claim that. Yeah guys, keep on "redefining" the industry with your absolutely mind blowing in-game chat functionality.
What is GamersGate?
steam will eventually die like everything and something better will take his place nokie - iphone - android don't think of it as bad, whatever replaces steam will have to be damn good
Yeah, but Valve actually makes their own games, so they have a lot more power. And Steam is planned around the games, rather than being built simply as a service. Maybe this will just turn out like WoW, where every other MMO proclaims that they could beat WoW, but never comes close.
The only non-Steam service I could see myself using is GOG, the rest seem too clunky and annoying. At least Gamer's Gate isn't bitching about Steam like all the other little sites though (See: D2D, Stardock)
Oh cool AVP is $6. It looks like a fun game and I would love to play as Alien, Predator, and the Marines. Should I buy it?
[QUOTE=Mr.Dounut;27962980]steam will eventually die like everything and something better will take his place nokie - iphone - android don't think of it as bad, whatever replaces steam will have to be damn good[/QUOTE] iPhone isn't dying. It's just that the nerdy crowd can use android instead of iphone. Ok it seems that GG charges in dollars. If it's true, bye steam and your shitty 50=50 pricing.
[QUOTE=Rubs10;27963016]Yeah, but Valve actually makes their own games, so they have a lot more power. And Steam is planned around the games, rather than being built simply as a service. Maybe this will just turn out like WoW, where every other MMO proclaims that they could beat WoW, but never comes close.[/QUOTE] FYI GamersGate is owned by Paradox, who also make their own games. And I use GamersGate for Paradox Games but I very highly doubt they'll come close to Steam.
More competition for Valve means lower prices
[QUOTE=Mr.Dounut;27962980]steam will eventually die like everything and something better will take his place nokie - iphone - android don't think of it as bad, whatever replaces steam will have to be damn good[/QUOTE] This doesn't work because iPhone isn't going anywhere, and if it was, it isn't being sent there by Android.
If properly maintained, Steam could have the potential to run for an eternity of gaming. Its not a monopoly situation, there are other alternatives, but none provide the quality that Steam does, so they don't get the same usage. Steam combines just about everything a gamer could want. It distributes games, it seamlessly updates them, it provides a communication platform, and even a social network, and they are testing for screenshots straight through Steam. And no doubt, within six months, you will see a video uploading service, and the screenshot service expanded to include out of game uploads, so users can upload their own photos. You'll probably see a more effective version of the Community released in the next year that allows more features like available on FaceBook and I garuntee Steam will eventually provide a file hosting service. Steam provides so many features quite easily. For a service to knock Steam out, it would have to provide everything Steam has now and more, including all the games and publishers, and have an incredibly strong fanbase right out of the gate. In all likelihood, Steam will not die. In fact, its quite likely it'll outlast Valve as an independent service.
GG also does this "blue coins" thingy which means if you buy enough games, you might have enough coins for a free game. Not much, but join this + usd pricing = GG is dominate for me atleast. Haven't bought a game from steam ever since they invented their shitty currency conversion.
they're dreaming
[QUOTE=Rubs10;27963016]Yeah, but Valve actually makes their own games, so they have a lot more power. And Steam is planned around the games, rather than being built simply as a service. Maybe this will just turn out like WoW, where every other MMO proclaims that they could beat WoW, but never comes close.[/QUOTE] Eve beats Wow easy. but then again Im not really into still turnbased combat. I like it spicey and fresh with gun sounds that actually mean something. [b]/opinion[/b]
Honestly, I can't see anything replacing Steam for me, since my huge library of Steam games will continue to grow, as well my friends list will keep me using Steam for my gaming needs. The only way I could see some other service overtaking Steam is not by trying to lure Steam's loyal customers away, but attracting new gamers altogether. I guess that means they have to attract all the customers who are turned off by DD and are still buying retail or perhaps casual gamers. You know that, or hope that Valve goes under.
[QUOTE=PyromanDan;27963237]Eve beats Wow easy. but then again Im not really into still turnbased combat. I like it spicey and fresh with gun sounds that actually mean something. [b]/opinion[/b][/QUOTE] WoW isn't turn based...
Wow is as turn based as eve is
One thing these kinds of services never get right is the website. Compare the GamersGate website to the Steam website- [url]http://www.gamersgate.com/[/url] [url]http://store.steampowered.com/[/url] The GamersGate site is a clusterfuck, seriously what is half this shit they're throwing at me? The Steam site keeps a very clean and organized look. Nothing is really crowded or mashed together. GamersGate on the other hand just has too much [i]stuff[/i]. It looks crammed and just isn't very aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
[QUOTE=johan_sm;27963298]Wow is as turn based as eve is[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=J0E_SpRaY;27963292]WoW isn't turn based...[/QUOTE] Well it isnt TURN BASED, its is dynamic in the same way I suppose, disregard that, I was thinking more D&D. One thing I can say is Im not really into (mostly) 2d combat. I know there are mounts and what not, but you can only fly so high, which only affects chance of hitting I suppose, right? (this is coming from a non wow player, just inferring from what Ive seen in the occasional video.) in eve its totally spread out, depending on the weapon, target and your own speed, distance from each other, damage type, and more effect weapons. movement wise the field is mainly based upon distance, really. it isnt just all fighting either, some people never leave station, managing industry and the market, which is pretty realistic economically.
[QUOTE=PyromanDan;27963237]Eve beats Wow easy. but then again Im not really into still turnbased combat. I like it spicey and fresh with gun sounds that actually mean something. [b]/opinion[/b][/QUOTE] I like WoW, and didn't like EVE, but it does offer something different, and I can see why it'd be fun. EVE is a good game, offers something different, and also offers something I'm happy to admit is deeper. However, in this case, GG is offering nothing new - so why should we switch?
[QUOTE=PyromanDan;27963440]Well it isnt TURN BASED, its is dynamic in the same way I suppose, disregard that, I was thinking more D&D. One thing I can say is Im not really into (mostly) 2d combat. I know there are mounts and what not, but you can only fly so high, which only affects chance of hitting I suppose, right? (this is coming from a non wow player, just inferring from what Ive seen in the occasional video.) in eve its totally spread out, depending on the weapon, target and your own speed, distance from each other, damage type, and more effect weapons. movement wise the field is mainly based upon distance, really. it isnt just all fighting either, some people never leave station, managing industry and the market, which is pretty realistic economically.[/QUOTE] In WoW your mounts only change your movement speed and do not give any real advantages. And you CAN fly anywhere in WoW, and pretty high
Sadly for them, you can't take over steam at this point. But competition is always good for prices and deals!
[QUOTE=Cl0cK;27963568]Sadly for them, you can't take over steam at this point. But competition is always good for prices and deals![/QUOTE] Yep, they already got a good discount on Dead Space 2.
[QUOTE=M2k3;27963310]One thing these kinds of services never get right is the website. Compare the GamersGate website to the Steam website- [url]http://www.gamersgate.com/[/url] [url]http://store.steampowered.com/[/url] The GamersGate site is a clusterfuck, seriously what is half this shit they're throwing at me? The Steam site keeps a very clean and organized look. Nothing is really crowded or mashed together. GamersGate on the other hand just has too much [i]stuff[/i]. It looks crammed and just isn't very aesthetically pleasing to the eye.[/QUOTE] To demonstrate... [img]http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/3627/gamersgate.jpg[/img] They really don't get how to manage their space. Then again, I guess they can't afford to keep their site clear of advertisements, so they probably have no choice. The space bordered by blue lines should take the most space on the site, you know the games they're trying to sell and promote.
Another good thing about GG is that you aren't confined to using a service to play like Steam. Their games work the same way as games from a disk and there's no offline mode bullshit you have to worry about and mods and patches work like normal. My major complaint for Steam is that many trainers and some mods don't work with certain games. Also you don't have the choice to install a game on a different hard drive with Steam because it's all in the Steam folder. I have almost an entire hard drive devoted to Steam so once it fills up I would love to be able to install games to a different hard drive but I can't. But nonetheless I get the majority of my games from Steam. The deals are too good.
gamersgate has better sales
It also needs a bigger variety of games.
i don't see the point in restricting yourself to one platform i have games on Impulse and Steam. whatever's cheaper works for me since both of them are fantastic services. unless the steam version of a game has some intense steam works support that I really care about, I usually only decide based on price.
[QUOTE=Lazor;27963867]i don't see the point in restricting yourself to one platform i have games on Impulse and Steam. whatever's cheaper works for me since both of them are fantastic services. unless the steam version of a game has some intense steam works support that I really care about, I usually only decide based on price.[/QUOTE] I try to only use Steam unless a deal is way too good to pass on (Some of the GFWL one dollar sales got me). If I'm using a service for my games, I'm most likely going to stick with the one I like best and the one I've used the longest. Same reason why I'll not pick up another MMO unless WoW suddenly goes kaput.
They don't make their own games, sell the same games that are on Steam, and are competing against Valve (the company that really dominates PC gaming both as a platform service and with games like Portal, Left 4 Dead, and the Half-Life series), and they still have the audacity to say that they can overtake steam? I haven't laughed this hard in a while [QUOTE=Lazor;27963867]i don't see the point in restricting yourself to one platform i have games on Impulse and Steam. whatever's cheaper works for me since both of them are fantastic services. unless the steam version of a game has some intense steam works support that I really care about, I usually only decide based on price.[/QUOTE] I don't know about you, but I don't necessarily like having multiple platforms on my computer. Instead of running steam and going through my Library of games, I'd have to start up an entirely different program for possibly one other game? That's stupid, and is the same reason I deleted the EA Download manager bullshit right after I installed it. I like having ONE, neat and tidy program managing my shit. For PC gaming, I basically [i]only[/i] use steam, unless something is released that isn't on the Steam store (in which case I just link the .exe to steam anyway).
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